tamperin' with dork-syded stuff {oswin/slendy}

[Regina Mills]

The past couple of weeks in Storybrooke had been...stressful, to say the very least. After her curse had broken, Regina hadn't thought it possible for things to get any more chaotic than they already were, but she'd been so very wrong. Somehow - whether it had been because of the curse breaking, or whether something else entirely was responsible, Cora had found her way out of Wonderland and into this world...unfortunately for everyone in it. And Regina, previously so composed and unflappable, had let her mother's presence affect her in the worst way.

There was no questioning that she wasn't currently at her most mentally sound at this point - especially since she'd been gradually relying more and more on magic, constantly attempting to hone her skills in preparation for the inevitable confrontation with the Queen of Hearts - but now the whole thing was beginning to affect her physically as well. Her sleeping and eating habits had grown...questionable to say the least over the past week or so, the deprivation of rest and nutrition leaving her a bit hazy on more than one occasion. But right now, that was the least of her worries. Much more important was figuring out what Cora was planning, and deciding what to do about it, before anyone else got hurt. Regina should have known better than to believe that her mother would solely focus her revenge on her alone, and leave it at that. No, Cora, of course, would want to cause her as much pain as possible - and she knew how to do that better than anyone. It was bad enough that she'd already made Oswin suffer the way she had, but if she ever found out about Henry? Regina didn't even want to think about the consequences. Cora was far from above hurting children. The former queen of the enchanted forest knew that all too well.

Unable to find any reliable way to keep an eye on her mother - even her magic mirror couldn't seem to keep proper tabs on her, probably due to some enchantment of Cora's - Regina had nothing to do but wait and see where her mother would strike next. And she was very, very bad at waiting. Like a child unable to keep still, she had been unable to function without finding some way to keep herself busy and distracted in the meantime. It was the only way Regina knew to cling to her sanity. Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately) for her, there always seemed to be some sort of trouble stirring in Storybrooke these days. Most recently, it had been the rumors she'd picked up of some sort of...creature haunting the woods bordering Storybrooke's park. There was talk of ghosts and wraiths, and Regina had initially been more than a little skeptical - a part of her still was, actually. After all, it was probably no coincidence that these 'spooky stories' were so well-timed with the approach of Halloween. People so often liked to allow their imaginations to run away with them at this time of year. But then she'd heard of the child who had wandered off while playing in the park and disappeared only a few days ago, and that had struck a nerve. Something was out there, ghost or not, and Regina very much intended to find out what it was.

At first, she'd protested Oswin coming with her. After what Cora had done to her, Regina was of the very strong opinion that she'd been through enough already, but very quickly now she was beginning to learn that when Oswin decided on something it was...rather difficult to talk her out of it. It was for that reason that Regina had begrudgingly decided to wait for her at the entrance of the park before beginning her little 'ghost hunt', watching the sun lower steadily below the horizon as she waited. Normally, Regina would have thought it a rather stupid idea to intentionally go venturing into the park at night, but the point of all of this was to actually catch this thing. And, according to what she'd heard thus far, the majority of the supposed 'sightings' had been after dark had fallen. Not that it particularly frightened her. She'd brought all of the essentials - a flashlight, water - and she had magic, for goodness' sake. Surely, there couldn't be much out here that she needed to worry about.

[Oswin Oswald]

Regina was entirely right in assuming what she did. Even though Oswin had indeed been shaken quite a bit by her little encounter with Cora's magic, she wasn't about to let that keep her away from investigating whatever this was. She was the Doctor's companion, and nothing was going to stop her from doing exactly as she liked, thank you very much, not even an evil magic user. And, for that reason, she'd chosen to accompany Regina to see what there was to be seen about these mysterious disappearances. The fact that they'd been children had struck a chord with her as well. Oswin hadn't been hired as Junior Entertainment Manager for nothing. She liked kids as a rule, and the thought of something that was out to kidnap children was rather disturbing.

Actually, that was why she hadn't told Em anything about this. Her behavior on a few occasions had been odd enough, Oswin didn't need to put her in any danger. She might have been reckless when it came to her own safety, but others? Well. There was a reason neither the Doctor or Em was coming alone. Well, actually, the Doctor was just as stubborn as she, usually, but still. Oswin had wanted to go alone, and she'd done just that. Approaching the gates of the park, she tugged her jacket a little closer around herself. Autumn had descended on the town of Storybrooke, and with it came chilly nights with winds that swirled the fallen leaves around her feet as she walked. Definitely creepy. If there were ever a night for ghosts and ghouls to be out, it would be this one.

Oddly enough the TARDIS hadn't found anything in the woods upon doing a scan of the surrounding area in Storybrooke. There had been a strange disturbance on the screen Oswin had been working on, a brief flash of static that she'd never seen before, but she hadn't paid it much mind. The Doctor had been working on the TARDIS at the time, so she'd chalked it up to that. However, something about it lingered in her mind, and she really couldn't say what it was. Recently, she'd begun to wonder if whatever it was had been the cause...but, that was silly. Oswin pushed the thought from her mind as she spotted Regina standing by the gate and briefly quirked an eyebrow at her appearance. The other woman wasn't looking well at all, but Oswin hardly blamed her. She supposed she'd be the same way if someone like Cora had turned up.

Her expression was replaced quickly with a smile as she stepped closer. "Ready to go?" Oswin asked, feeling in her belt to make sure she had everything. Scanner, flashlight, communicator around her wrist...yup. Everything was all in order. "D'you know if anyone's actually seen this thing?" It might be a little difficult if they didn't know what it looked but, but going into something without any knowledge of it wasn't something Oswin hadn't done before. She traveled with the Doctor, after all, having no plan was usually the plan for everything.

[slendermang]

A creature like the Slender Man was naturally attracted to strange happenings and always seemed to be present where something was not quite right. Such a happening was occurring, or had just occurred, in Storybrooke. A powerful curse had been broken and magic had been restored. The sheer power from the magic had brought the Slender Man to Storybrooke, where he had been doing what he always does. The people of the town were all abuzz about the thin, darkly-clad man had apparently been lurking around the park. There had been many reports to the authorities about him, but they'd been unable to find any evidence of his existence. A group prank was suspected until a child had been lost in the woods. Then, more serious action had been taken. However, the police still couldn't find anything.

That was how it always was. The usual routine for police investigating the Slender Man. They'd found some information on the Slender Man through a variety of sources, but even then the information was minimal and exceedingly vague. They didn't exactly end the search for the kid who had been kidnapped, but there was much less being put into it. The Slender Man had no interest in the police hunt for him. They were easy to keep away. All he need do is become invisible to them. Killing them was... unnecessary. It wasn't as if they'd be able to harm him if they could see him. There were very few things that could directly harm him and humanity's weapons were completely incapable of doing so.

The Slender Man was waiting. He was simply standing in the middle of the woods, blending in with the leaf-less trees and waiting for some unsuspecting bystander to cross his path. The rumors of his presence had sparked some search groups and dares to go into the woods, so it was easy to find prey there. All he need do was wait...